Project overview: Lay the groundwork for future landscape projects that will improve accessibility, refresh outdoor gathering areas, and re-establish historical character in Yosemite Village.  

How your support helps: Yosemite Village is at the center of Yosemite’s human environment. In 1924, when the cornerstone of Yosemite Museum was set in place, so was the sturdy foundation of the partnership between Yosemite Conservancy and the National Park Service (NPS) that continues to thrive 100 years later. The Yosemite Village Strategy Report addresses how to revitalize the condition of the cultural landscape and address the next 20 years of appropriate maintenance, operations, and interpretive objectives.  

In 2020, The Conservancy and NPS worked together to initiate a multiyear, interdisciplinary Village visioning effort aimed at identifying data gaps and taking a fresh and comprehensive look at the use and significance of buildings and transportation pathways in Yosemite Village. From this planning effort, a Yosemite Village Cultural Landscape Report was completed in 2023, identifying recommended treatments for the Yosemite Village landscape. Additionally, a Historic Structure Report of the Valley Visitor Center was completed in 2023.  

With guidance from these two critical documents, and insight from robust planning efforts in 2020 and 2021, NPS employees will partner with the Conservancy, Tribal representatives, and park partners to implement the Project Strategy Report. 

This year: In 2025, a core team of NPS employees will build on the 2024 Village Strategy Report by: identifying areas that need improvement for accessibility and safety, planning to refresh the functionality and aesthetic of outdoor gathering areas and improvements to visitor circulation, developing a final budget and scope of work, and beginning the pre-compliance process to move forward with construction. 

Project partners: Yosemite National Park, Yosemite Conservancy, and Tribal partners 

Kimberly Oppen

Project Notes

"Yosemite Village is still one of the best examples where Yosemite Conservancy and National Park Service missions overlap and manifest in the built environment."